AQUAMAN AND THE OTHERS continues its roller coaster of a ride as Dan Jurgens and Lan Medina keep up the fast pace of the “Legacy of Gold” story arc. #3 is a step up from the previous issue which suffered sorely from poor dialogue and little to no character development. In “Legacy of Gold: Part 3” though, we see the team become more united in their efforts to save Sayeh, with Aquaman looking more like a functional leader. Though this issue is a step up from the previous one, it has a ways to go before becoming a must read.
POSITIVES
The reveal at the end, where we are introduced to the main villain “Legend” was my favorite scene of the arc so far. The flashbacks Jurgens has put in at the beginning of each issue have been working for the most part, and to see that Prince Goran has survived for centuries solely to avenge his father makes the story that much more interesting. Because forgive me if you enjoy them but the Wonder Twins Darya and Anton let me down again as I see nothing unique about these baddies. They reek of the generic “My grandpop hates you so I’m going to hate you too and kill you and stuff” vibe. It’s okay now though, as we can focus on Prince Goran aka Legend.
The other good part of this issue is we see more of a team dynamic between The Others. When they fan out to search for the captive Sayeh they move and speak to each other in a manner that a seasoned team would. Aquaman playing the quarterback of the team of course calling out the plays and strategies, very nice to see.
NEGATIVES
The exposition and dialogue continue to be a bit disappointing as nothing attempts to even surprise us or give us a plot twist. It wasn’t that hard to predict how the story would unfold. Dan Jurgens is a good writer and has a proven track record, so I’m hoping he will continue improving on the script with each passing issue.
Also while the art has been consistent for the most part of the young series, there was a bit of mishap on one page. On Page 4 we see a very blonde Darya with no cape in one panel, then in the next panel she becomes a brunette with a cape, only to be changed right back to a blonde with no cape in the very next panel! Definitely confusing and it made me do a triple take.
VERDICT
AQUAMAN AND THE OTHERS has been consistently inconsistent for the most part as Jurgens and Medina continue to gain their footing as a creative team. #3 is not bad, but it’s not good. The plot moves along in a big fashion with the reveal of the story’s villain, but it must continue to gain steam and traction. #4 has been set up to be full of fireworks so let’s hope it can live up to it!
RATING
